I was never very aware of a Fathers Day celebration when I was younger, despite the fact it was around. Beginning in America in 1910 it never really took off, certainly not in the UK until the mid 70′s. This left me faced with the problem of getting my dad a gift twice a year- birthdays and Christmas. Not much of a problem really, as the default was inevitably chocolates (giant Toblerone to be exact) socks and a tie. He wasn’t much of a drinker, so it tended to stop there.
In general I think buying a gift for a man is pretty straight forward as gadgets, books on gadgets or DVDs are all pretty safe bets, but one particular category most seem to find tricky is when it comes to buying whisky.
If you are a non-whisky drinker, the thought of standing faced with row upon row of golden to dark brown liquids with unpronounceable names or frankly unfathomable descriptions of the contents can be a daunting one. Now if you happen to be trying to make your choice in one of any number of supermarkets rather than a specialist store, good luck finding someone who can advise you on the right choice. In fact, good luck finding someone who even drinks it.
A little preparation is the key to creating a smile on the face of your chosen recipient.
What do they normally drink?
This is the easiest one. Open up the drinks cabinet, take a peak and if there is a selection inside then note them down. Stick to the single malts as most whisky drinkers will have a couple of blends in there to have as an “every day drop” but will treasure a single malt more although, some premium blends such as Wemyss or Compass Box are amongst the exceptions to that rule. Most brands will have a selection of expressions or limited releases to choose from, so once you know the brand it’s quite easy to find a special version that dad might like that wont cost an arm and a leg. Keep an eye out for words on the label such as “Distillery or Managers release”.
Style over region
Whisky regions in Scotland are nothing short of misleading and confusing and so are not always the best indicator of what kind of whisky you will find inside the bottle. Don’t think that just because it says Islay on the label it will be pleated (smokey) and not all Speyside whiskies are light and fruity. Bunnahabhain, is an Islay distillery which isn’t a smokey malt. Similarly Smokey whisky like Ardmore can be found in the highlands. Best then to go for a style of whisky rather than a region.
Colour me bad
Ok, it’s not a hard and fast rule, but if most of your dad’s cabinet is stocked with gold coloured whisky, there is a chance he likes those which have been matured in American ex-bourbon cask (white oak) in which about 70% of whisky is matured. These whiskies typically have white fleshed fruit (think apple, pear, quince) aromas and flavour rather than those liquids matured in ex-sherry cask (European oak) which tends to give a deep amber colour and a spicy profile to the resting spirit. You can find some bourbon cask examples in my recommendations at the end of this article. Good sherry cask examples come from Glengoyne and Glenfarclass or Glenrothes.
Passport Control
If you are sure you understand what they like then why not try a similar style to their normal tipple from outside Scotland. Chichibu distillery from Japan is wonderfully light and fruity whilst Paul John from India gives rich spicy smoothness from its fast maturation in the Goan heat. Balcones Texan Whisky is big and bold but has all the finesse of a well made scotch with age or the English Whisky Company which might be young, but its creative use of varied casks has given birth to some outstanding examples which many whisky experts have lauded so its bound to excite even the most experienced of dram lovers.
Ageist
Older ain’t always best! There is normally a different type of maturation (ageing process) in a range of Scotch from the same company which means an 18 year old isn’t just six years older than a 12 year old. They could have very different flavour profiles and may not suit the palate of the intended.
I’m a big fan of Glenfiddich 15 year old and would choose it most times over the 18 year old.
Something special
It’s great if you have the budget to get something very rare and limited. Online is the best place to search with retailers such as Master of Malt or The Whisky Exchange and they don’t always cost the earth but make sure the recipient know it’s for drinking! Collectible whiskies are not always the ideal gift for someone as they tend to have a theme to their collection so it’s best best leave it to them.
It’s got your name on
Companies like Master of Malt will customise a bottle label on it to include your fathers name. It’s a great value for money service but you still have to know which bottle you want to use. See above!
Birth year
This is a tricky one. Assuming your over 18 there is a good chance your father was born a few years ago making it tricky to find a bottle from the year he was born. You can find bottles which were distilled in a certain year, and bottled shortly after. Therefore, the contents of the bottle may only be 10-12 years old but from 1960 say. Trust me when I say this might be still an expensive purchase, but a lot cheaper than trying to source a 53 year old dram!
Among friends
If the budget allows, why not think about the Scotch Malt Whisky Society membership? The SMWS allows access to single cask, cask strength bottles from all the distilleries in Scotland (and many more further afield).
My choices and recommendations
Highland park 18- Produced on Orkney, this island malt has won numerous awards including Worlds Best Single Malt. Although its American white oak, the oak has been seasoned with sherry so that it’s pale colour belies it’s spicy nature. It’s delicate with peat smoke, bags of marmalade type fruits but without the typical TCP or medicinal smokey nose often associated with west coast Islay whisky. If they like BBQ’s, try this. RRP £60
Bunnahabhain 12 - American cask. An Islay whisky with a difference, peat free malt makes for a light, seaside dram with an almost refreshing salty caramel character. One of our personal favourites and always in the cabinet it’s along a similar style to Balblair or Scapa. RRP £33
Glenfiddich 15 – With its unique ‘Solera’ maturation system and the use of three casks, giving spice from the sherry, white fruits from the refill bourbon cask and vanilla and coconut from the brand new American oak cask. This expression stands out from the other Glenfiddich offerings This is a great whisky with a dryer spice than the rest of the family. On the light side but still fruity and hints of honey. RRP £32
Ardbeg Ugeadail – A marriage of bourbon and sherry casks this is a powerful smokey whisky at a higher ABV delivers a rounded palate which is well integrated. If they like peat, and in particular Islay peat than grab this as it is worth every penny. Similar to Laphoaig, Lagavulin and Caol Ila. RRP £50
Old Pultney 17 – Predominantly American cask. The 21 year old may have won best in the world, but the 17 is my go-to dram. Warm and rounded with a slightly salty coastal edge it satisfies most palates and is a perfect accompaniment to those chocolates salted caramels you bought dad. RRP £52
AnCnoc 12 – Approx 70% American cask with 30% sherry cask. Sweet and honeyed, this rather lesser known single malt has a great character and it’s an easy drinker making it a real crowd pleaser. Will suit most people and as its not so well know it will make you look like you know a bit about whisky. Similar to Balvenie doublewood. RRP £31
Glengoyne 15 – For a full on ex-sherry cask matured blast of spicy rich leather and deep dark fruits you wont go far wrong with this example. With lots of lovely spices and warming notes, its the perfect dram to sit back and relax with once all the socks and ties have been unwrapped. RRP £45
Monkey Shoulder – A blended malt with bags of character, offers incredible value for money and if you find out where it got its name from, it makes an interesting tale to tell when you hand it over. RRP £27
Tweedale – A real unknown and well worth seeking out for that special gift. A historic (found in an original journal) blend of single cask whiskies it is big and bold with ooodles of pleasure. Reborn and already making waves, this is a great dram to savour. RRP £37
Balvenie 12 Single Barrel – The 12 Double Wood is perhaps far better known, but this lighter expression drawn from a single American wood barrel is a unique snapshot from this craft distillery. Without any sherry cask influence, it’s a lighter, dryer style than its siblings with bags of vanilla and lingering fruit. RRP £44
Good Luck!
Tags: age, American, AnCnoc, Ardbeg, ardmore, Balblair, Balcones, Balvenie, barrel, Berwick, bourbon, bow, Box, Bunnahabhain, buy, caol, Cask, chichibu, choose, colour, Compass, cost, dad, Day, doublw, English, european, Fathers, gift, Glenfarclas, Glenfiddich, Glengoyne, Glenrothes, help, Highland, how, Ichiro, ila, India, indian, Japan, japanes, John, lagavulin, Laphroaig, look, malt, market, master, mature, Monkey, much, Old, Park, paul, Pulteney, regions, review, Scapa, Scotch, shelf, Sherry, shop, Shoulder, single, Society, speyside. sherry, style, supermarket, take, taste, teach, texan, texas, Tweeddale, Wemyss, what, whiskey, whisky
Master of Malt have long been pals of Dramatic Whisky and I’d like to think it’s because our two companies have the same outlook on the world of whisky- keep it fun. I would say that we both bring a youthfulness to whisky, but my graying hair might be evidence that I’m simply hoping to be included in that category!
Something thing they do which I think is ace is ‘Drinks by the dram’ which allows anyone to purchase miniatures of just about anything they stock. Of course, you have to pay accordingly and a 3cl sample starts at under £4 up to the current £209 for 3cl of Glenfarclas 1953. Fortunately enough they sent me a sample of that last one. See, I told you we were pals. 
This is a huge help to those who wish to try a broader range of whisky without forking out to do so.
They also have a new range of their own bottling under the name ‘That Boutique-y Whisky Company’ and yes, the “y” is hyphenated. Under this label the guys bottle single malts, grains and blends from a variety of renowned distilleries, each limited release 50cl bottle is adorned with various sketches and comic book illustrations which will no doubt help the already growing cult status of these drams. The range already has quite a number of releases in the range and when they offered to send me some samples, the ‘Drinks by the Dram’ creation came in handy. I have 18 samples to get through! so I am doing this in parts, this being part one. Selecting the first five was no easy task, but sticking to things such as Bunnahabhain and Deanston which I recently reviewed and Clynelish as another favourite plus Springbank and Braes O’ Glenlivet to round out a fine line-up. And I thought I would start with the lighter styles so the choices of my first five samples (part 1) are as follows:
Clynelish- Batch 1
So what’s the label all about: Clynelish was built after Brora closed and whilst it is a superb whisky, it is seen by purist (or should that be purrists) in this case as never quite being up to ‘scratch’.
48.6% abv 
197 Bottles RRP: £54.95 50cl
Appearance: Pale straw with white gold
Nose: Rattan fruit basket filed with tangerines, melon and peaches. Not immediately typical of Clynelish, less waxy but still has a coastal “freshness” holding the fruit down. Light spice on the nose, earthy vanilla pod and a bit of waxed church candle towards the end.
Palate: More of the expected waxy, creamy mouth-feel with stem ginger and vanilla before a hint of cardamom and cinnamon spice dusted over red berries mid palate. Faint salty element licks around the mouth bringing the earthy notes back to the fore.
Finish: Lingering citrus peel with a waxed edge. Earthy tones dry out the very long finish.
Summary: At first, not immediately recognisable as a Clynelish, them it bursts through with jubilant energy. Very good dram indeed.
Springbank- Batch 1
So what’s the label all about: Those cheeky chaps (bet they hate that tag) from Cask Strength, Neil and Joel twisting and shouting, trying to squeeze every last particle from a grain mill.
54.6% abv
274 bottle release RRP: Sold Out
Appearance: Light Honey, rose gold
Nose: A sweet peat reek to begin, underlined with coal embers, brown paper, slices of start fruit and a hint of baby sick. Came back to this 20 minutes later and yup, still baby sick in there somewhere.
Palate: Light sweet peat smoke and a mineral iodine flare before charred cedar wood dries out the palate allowing the white fleshed fruits to emerge.
Finish: Turns slightly oily to the finish, with the white fruits flowing on for some time.
Summary: Once you have a note stuck in your head, like a bad song, it’s tricky to get rid of it and butyric acid is a tough tune for any spirit to hum (of). I just could get the nose to match up to the tasty palate and it stopped the enjoyment right there.
Bunnahabhain- Batch 1
So what’s the label all about: A picture tells a thousand words- well almost. Here we see an elevated depiction of the Bunnahabhain distillery itself with everything from rally cars to shark infested waters.
46.1% abv
233 bottles released RRP: £51.95 50cl
Appearance: Pale yellow straw
Nose: Parma ham fat with white pepper over a piece of driftwood. Almost akin to reposado tequila, a definite vegetal nose with busts of coastal sea air. Samphire, turning to damp hay and deeper farmyard notes with a floral lift of violets at the end.
Palate: Creamy mouth-feel with liquorice root, milk bottle chews and vanilla before the salt washes through to leave chestnuts and buttery elements and peat water. Touches of ginger root and kippers keep the complex palate lively.
Finish: Dry spiced palate with tight tannin feel, lingering peat residue.
Summary: Being a fan of Bunnahabhain I was keen to get into this one and it didn’t disappoint. Complex, ever-changing and almost a challenge to the palate but in such an interesting way. Superb.
Deanston – Batch 1
So what’s the label all about: Deanston used to be a cotton mill before it was turned into a distillery in the mid 60′s, so it’s fairly ‘new” it whisky terms. According to MoM, hippies were around in the 60′s also although I doubt many made it to the banks of the river Teith.
50.8% abv
218 Bottle release RRP £46.95 50cl
Appearance: Bright gold
Nose: Sweet apple sauce with perfumed vanilla and fresh ginger shavings. The up front nose calms to reveal quince, grape and yellow sultanas with a good beechwood background.
Palate: Rich, creamy vanilla to the fore with lighter ginger spice close behind. Over-ripe banana with flaked almonds and a leafy element towards the end.
Finish: Dries with good malty grip and clean spice.
Summary: Quite close to the Deanston 12 in character, but seems to have the volume turned up a touch. Good example of this new kid on the block.
Braes o’ Glenlivet – Batch 1
So what’s the label all about: The inspiration for the label was the fact that it was Braes o’ Glenlivet that drew the Master of Malt trio Ben, Tom and Justin into the wonderful world of whisky in the first place.
47.2% abv
210 Bottle release RRP: £51.95 50cl
Appearance: Light straw, white gold.
Nose: Red berries mixed with poster paint, almond and lead pipe. Lets just say there is a lot going on in here. Varnished wood, bread and butter pudding, tinned pears and cherries.
Palate: Rich and buttery, again hints of bread and butter pudding spiced with nutmeg and cinnamon. Brazil nut and cherry bakewells.
Finish: Long and creamy, the bakewell lingers on.
Summary: A huge complex whisky, seemingly light at first but continues to develop and twist. A lot of fun and a great whisky.
So that is Part 1 done, as you will see the above limited releases are already selling out and I suspect this will always be the case. A great idea, executed with style and a good dollop of humour. Wish the rest of the industry could loosen up a bit like this.
Tags: 3cl, barley, Batch, ben, blend, Blended, blog, bottle, boutique, boutique-y, Box, braes, brand, brora, Bunnahabhain, by, Cask, cat, Clynelish, comic, company, cool, copper, cost, cotton, cute, dead, Deanston, design, dinky, distillery, dram, drinks, evian, expensive, fun, Glass, Glenfarclas, Glenlivet, handy, harrison, held, help, hippy, image, joel, label, limited, malt, master, mill, miniature, Neil, New, notes, of, Old, own, post, price, release, retro, review, Ridley, sample, samples, Scotch, Scotland, seal, select, sent, single, Springbank, still, strength, tasting, Teith, the, top, van, vintage, wax, whiskey, whisky
When was the last time you heard someone say “Oh, I stay away from peated whisky as I’m not a fan”. I hear it in a regular basis as guests at Dramatic Whisky events come to grips with the various styles of drams on offer. But more often than not that statement is followed by “especially Islay“. Now, it’s this last part that sends me into a mini meltdown and it is truly the fault of the whisky industry from the past. Regions were to a point, a quick way of introducing people to various styles of whisky, but this lingering categorisation only serves to restrict the consumers choices rather than aid them. I wrote a bit about them here which goes into a bit more detail but basically, if you choose your whisky only by region, you’ll miss out on some gems in the whisky world which brings me neatly onto Bunnahabhain.
Bunnahabain, pronounced “Boona-haa-ven” and meaning ‘stream foot” or ‘mouth of the river’ with its location at the end of the Margadale river from where the distillery draws its water from, is located on the north-east part of the island rather isolated in comparison to the other distilleries on Islay. Since 1881 the distillery has been producing whisky and whilst it was true that at that point the whisky would have been peated, today it is one of only two distilleries on Isaly that does not have peated whisky as its “core release” the other being Bruichladdich. With its own floor maltings ceasing in 1963 its safe to say the change probably came some time around then.
So what of the whisky today? The most easily accessible are the 12, 18 and 25 year old whiskies with Toiteach as the limited edition “peated” style all at the higher abv of 46.3% and non chill-filtered, a move in recent times across the board from current owners Burn Stewart Distillers and welcomed by Bunnahabhain fans. I also had the good fortune to review the recent 40 year old release which was a stunning dram indeed. Bunnahabhain has always been a whisky I would opt for if I saw it on a back bar somewhere as its coastal style and soft character is just what I look for in my malts.
Bunnahabhain 12 year old Single Malt Whisky
Ex Bourbon Cask
46.3% ABV
Non Chill FIltered
RRP £30
Appearance: Pale white gold
Nose: If ever a whisky had an aroma of its origins, this is it. Fresh sea air on a Scottish pebble beach. Samphire over driftwood and lifts of fresh ginger.
Palate: Chewy and rich with fresh ginger creams, malty mid palate and salted caramel. Warming yet still fresh notes of the sea.
Finish: Ginger and vanilla spice linger with a hint of earthy mocha.
Bunnahabhain 18 year old Single Malt Whisky
Ex Sherry Cask
46.3% abv
Non Chill Filtered
RRP £55
Appearance: Polished bronze
Nose:The DNA of the seaside emerges first, salty air, tarry ropes wrapped in leather with bold sherry character. Date and fig loaf sprinkled with nutmeg and an espresso on the side.
Palate: Big on the sherry influence, spiced with mace, leather and hints of pipe tobacco and roasted brazil nut. There is still the core message of salted sweetness blended through this bold palate.
Finish: Waves of salty almonds washed down with sherry and a bundle of earthy spices behind.
Bunnahabhain 25 year old Single Malt Whisky
Ex Sherry cask
46.3%
Non Chill Filtered
RRP £200
Appearance: Deep bronze
Nose: Sweet leather and cherry wood polished with linseed oil. Rich spices, old velvet, driftwood and tarry rope - the nose twists and turns around the central elements.
Palate: Bursting with rich deep sherry soaked dark fruits, mixed spice and Demerara sugar. It seems spiky at first, but is instantly calmed by a creamy vanilla element, smooths out and relaxes leaving behind a trail of deliciousness.
Finish: Incredibly long, old leather, slight tannin grip and a hint of over roasted chestnut almost charred.
Bunnahabhain Toiteach Single Malt Whisky
Ex Bourbon Cask
46%
Non chill filtered
RRP £50
Appearance: Pale straw
Nose: Immediate peat smoke but with an unmistakable coastal character. Sweet salty air and drifts of dry citrus peel (tangerine) in the background. Old fish and chips wrapper with a bit of honey, vanilla and samphire all in there.
Palate: A sweet smoke, rich and playful on the palate, parma ham and smoked figs with a slightly medicinal citrus edge somewhere between menthol and lime.
Finish: unsurprisingley it’s the sweeter side of the peat smoke that lingers, turning slightly salty at the end.
Summary: A fine line-up indeed with just about everythign you could ask for. The style is eveident throughout the range despite the change of cask, that coastal element shines and helps maintain the Bunnahabhain message.
Tags: 12, 18, 25, 40, American, barley, bottle, bourbon, brine, Bunnahabhain, burn, Cask, chill, coast, coastal, distillery, eighteen, ellen, filter, filtered, five, floor, foot, forty, hold, island, islay, mainland, malt, margadlae, mature, mouth, New, notes, Old, peat, Peated, perfect, Port, release, rest, review, river, salt, sand, Scotch, Scotland, seaside, Sherry, single, smoke, smokey, tasting, toiteach, twelve, twenty, wait, whiskey, whisky
With a weekend behind me I would rather forget, having been to one end of the country and back again in a day, to then arrive back in London on a time schedule which would leave even those with teleportation abilities wondering how they were to fit everything in, it was a pleasure to make (if a tad late) my final appointment of the day. The calm, tranquil setting of the Pickering room, deep in the basement of No.3 St James street at Berry Bros & Rudd, being filed with familiar faces such as Neil and Joel of Cask Strength, Marcin from No.1 Drinks, SMWS boys, Billy, Alwyn and Kirtsy, certainly helped remove the stress of the proceeding days and hours. It’s a rather amazing building, steeped with history at every turn that I have had the fortunate luck of hearing over many years and it never fails to entertain me each time I visit. Thankfully, its normally with a glass of something rather special in my hand and this time was no exception.
The reason we were gathered was to hear the ever entertaining Doug McIvor, Master of Cask Selection, talk us through the latest release in the Blue Hanger range. Blue Hanger is a collection of blended malt (vattings for those who remember the term) whiskies of exceptional quality named after William ‘Blue’ Hanger, a loyal customer at Berry Bros. & Rudd know for his expensive blue clothes. The releases originally came to the diplomatic market in 1932 but had faded into history, until being revived in 2003 by Doug. The first release was a sublime marriage of Glenlivet and Glen Grant casks which produced just 723 bottles from a total of 4 hogsheads. Unsurprisingly, it sold out almost immediately upon its release as has been the fate of every subsequent release in the Blue Hanger range. Creation of a new addition only takes place when Doug feels they have secured the right casks in the best condition and can create a complimentary expression addition to the range.
There is always a nod to the original style which was heavy on the sherry cask although Release no. 6 did surprise a few of us with its more smokey character- but then, after winning Best Scotch Blended Malt in the World in 2008 & 2012 – it clearly was a pleasant surprise. With Doug now working on the 7th release of Blue Hanger, we were offered samples of releases 2, 4, 6 & 7 plus a couple of little single cask tipples just for fun – and a 1974 Glen Grant single cask IS a lot of fun. You will have to forgive me for not popping any tasting notes below on that particular whisky- sometimes you have to just put the pen down and enjoy something as rare as this, giving it some respect rather than trying to analyze it. After all, the pleasure is in the drinking.
Blue Hanger 2nd Release 25year old Blended Single Malt
723 bottles, 45.6% ABV, Non-chill filtered
4 hogshead of Glenlivet 1974, 1 sherry butt of Glenlivet 1974, 2 hogsheads of Glen Grant 1974
Appearance- Warm gold with hints of rose
Nose- Tropical fruit salad with apricot and crushed nuts. Buttery with slight rancio notes and light orange zest emerged before turning more towards floral lavender, hay, nubuck leather and kirsch.
Palate- Much of what was to be discovered on the nose with additional chewy cinnamon, coffee/cocoa nib, cherry wood and spices of nutmeg and clove.
Blue Hanger 4th Release Blended single Malt
3256 Bottles, 45.6% ABV, Non Chill Filtered
2 hogheads of Mortlach 1992, 1 sherry butt of Mortlach 1991, 1 sherry butt of Glen Elgin 1991, 2 sherry butts from Glenlivet 1974, ’75, 1 hogshead of Glenlivet 1976
Appearance- Golden Hay
Nose- Brazil nut and new plasticine with charred nut shells and a floral element which turns mineral before light clementine noted emerge. Struck match and the side of a Swan Vesta strike pad come to the front but seem to unite the other elements.
Palate- A gentle palate of warm spice, light honey and butter with cardamom and dry, toasty wood. Orange peel and dried apricots bring a welcome fruity center to the whisky.
Blue Hanger 6th Release Blended Single Malt
2223 bottles, 45.6% ABV Non Chill Filtered
Sherry butt of Glenrothes 1990
Sherry Butt of Bunnahabhain 1990
Hogshead of Bowmore 1980
Hogshead of Bowmore 1987
Appearance- Warm bronze with rose gold
Nose- Chocolate covered Brazil nut, linseed oil and liquorice root all wrapped in seaside aromas with drifts of dying embers. Brandy butter, flamed orange peel, ginger root and hay compete this most complex of noses.
Palate- Chewy indeed and as indicated from the nose, a lot going on but thankfully in harmony. Salty bar-b-que with pancetta strips, gingerbread, peat smoke and cinnamon spiced chestnuts all playing there part in bringing this wonderful marriage of sherry influenced peat smoke together.
Summary- If the outstanding quality of these exceptional cask, expertly married together to create delicious whisky was not enough to tempt you- try the fact that this latest release is only £66.81 RRP! don’t expect it to hanger round forever ! If this is a little rich for your pocket, then you wont go far wrong with Berry’s other blended option- Cutty Sark
Tags: bery, Blended, blender, blue, Bowmore, Bros, Bunnahabhain, Cask, cellar, chill, collection, Cutty, dram, Elgin, filtered, fine, Glen, Glenlivet, Glenrothes, grant, hanger, history, Japanese, London, malt, Marcin, master, merchant, Motrlach, non, notes, Old, oldest, rare, release, review, Ridley, Rudd, Sark, Scotch, select, selection, shop, single, SMWS, strength, tasting, vat, vatted, whisky, wine
It’s been a busy time for Dramatic Whisky and aside from all the tasting events and filing, the samples and invitations to new launches have been flowing through. Most notable is the fact that we have been really spoiled by the quality. Grants 25, Bunnahabhain 40, Balvenie Liberated Casks, Wemyss Single Cask Aultmore to name just a few and the most recent, the Balblair 1969 vintage. I have had the pleasure of visiting Balblair distillery and sampling the core expressions if the 2002, 1975 and a sneak preview of the 1969 vintage here. There was also a recent travel retail release of the ’96. But it was the official release of the 1969 bottle (our sample at the distillery was from a single cask!) that found me at the Soho Whisky Club earlier this week and is some rather fine company.
The distillery manager, John MacDonald was there to guide us through the tasting, and hanging on his every word were whisky writers, bloggers and retailers such as Neil and Joel from Cask Strength, Billy from The Whisky Exchange, Becky from The Spirits Business, Laura from Imbibe Magazine, Ian who wrote 101 whiskies to try before you die, Olly from Just Drinks and the list goes on.
As I said we began with the fresh and lively 2002, moving to the richer 97 then to the 89 which all revealed an incredible change in character, before the 1975 vintage which was a heady combination of all elements found in the previous vintages and beautifully balanced. Finally, the 1969 vintage.
Balblair vintage 1969 single malt scotch whisky
Distilled 1969 bottled 2012 (43 years old)
A marriage of only 6 casks 41.4% abv
Non chill filtered, natural colour
2nd fill American oak hogshead cask
RRP: £2,500
Appearance: Honey gold with warm amber
Nose: Orange blossom honey, wax candle and denta-stix. Warm brioche with baked apple, soft toffee sauce over tropical fruits of banana and pineapple with hints of cider, leather and mint.
Palate: Big rounded warm spices take hold, calmed with a touch of menthol (eucalyptus oil) struck match, red berry compote and liquorice root. Ample vanilla to round out the oak, not allowing it to overpower but compliment instead. Toffee apples dusted with cinnamon and caramel wafers complete the palate.
Finish: Complex, generous and lingering. The balanced honey/spice keeps delivering more and more.
Summary: An outstanding whisky which shows just how well this brand lasts. It is unusual to find a brand how simple relies on the age of its whiskies to make up its core expressions rather than playing around with various types of wood maturation and marriages. As a consumer, Blablair is a great choice. Get stuck into the current vinategs and start your journey towards the superb 1969. Best of all, you have a bit of time as the Balblair 1969 will be launched in the USA this year at $3500, then released in 2013 in other focus markets including the UK, France, Russia and South East Asia. Enough time to save up also!
Tags: 101, 1969, 1975, 2002, 40, alcohol, America, American, Aultmore, Balblair, Balvenie, before, blog, bottled, Bunnahabhain, Business, buxton, Cask, Club, die, distilled, distillery, dram, drinks, exchange, first, fresh, fruit, Grants, hand, imbibe, journalist, just, London, looy, luanch, magazine, malt, members, notes, oak, release, retail, review, Scotch, Scotland, Scottish, select, selected, single, Soho, spirits, strength, tasting, travel, tropical, try, vintage, warehouse, Wemyss, whiskies, whisky, wkiskey, Years
You know that feeling of panic that sets in when you loose something like a set of keys and you are on a tight schedule, slapping pockets, turning over sofa cushions in a frantic attempt to discover their hiding place. Horrid isn’t it, but when you eventually find them the rush of relief is great. Or when you remember about a possession you haven’t seen in a while, you know you have it, but its just not been in your life and when you do stumble across it again, its welcomed back and put to good use.
So imagine if you happened to stumble across a cask of 40 year old whisky that you didn’t realise you had. Just how would that feel? Well, you could ask Ian MacMillan, Master Distiller at Bunnahabhain because thats exactly what happened to him when he found some ‘Turney’ casks, which were filled with Bunnahabhain whisky over 40 years ago by Glasgow wine merchants J G Turney. I suppose its difficult to imagine how you ‘forget’ a few casks, but as Bunnahabhain store around 21,000 casks at the distilleries warehouse on Islay, (some of which will make its way into the superb Black Bottle blend) it becomes a bit easier to understand.
Bunnahabhain has long been a favourite of mine and I have used a number of bottles including the duty free releases of Darach Ur in my Dramatic Whisky events to show people that not all whisky from Islay is peated as is the popular misconception about whisky regions. Therefore, I was more than delighted to reciev a sample of the newly discovered 40 year old Bunnahabhain which was accompanied by a illustration from the label created by Iain McIntoshScots illustrator, which depicts the journey this rested malt has undergone.
Bunnhabhain Single Malt Scotch Whisky
40 Years Old
Limited release of 750 bottles
ABV 41.7% vol. Un-chillfiltered
RRP: £1999
Appearance: Burnished copper with rose gold
Nose: Candied orange, vanilla wax cande, nougat and heather honey. Light earthy spice, ginger bread and balsa wood all very well integrated and still lively. Waxed leather saddle with lavender and violets round off the nose.
Palate: Orange oil with a mineral note, almost diesel like before rounded malt and ginger spice open the palate up allowing deeper vanilla and earthy spice to grip hold. Seems to sit on top of your tongue for a while before sinking in. Very little wood element which is surprising considering the age.
Finish: Clean yet spicy, again almost a mineral/fuel-like dryness before light oak and vanilla linger.
Summary: Certainly lively for its age and and unsurprisingly complex but its this assertive spice that perhaps shows the greatest departure from the classic Bunnahabhain style. Its heading towards a dryer style of whisky, perhaps held together with the waxy element before becoming too oaky.
Right, I’m off to search down the back of the sofa for my keys again.
Tags: 40, aged, biggest, Black, blend, Blended, bottle, bottled, Bunnahabhain, buy, Cask, cost, Darach Ur, distiller, dram, drink, duty, expensive, found, free, Glasgow, hand, hardest, iain, Ian, ice, illustrator, island, islay, keys, latest, limited, lost, MacMillan, malt, master, McIntosh, Old, oldest, peat, Peated, price, rare, regions, release, released, rest, review, reviewed, Scotch, Scotland, Scottish, sinlge, source, tasting, warehouse, water, whiskey, whisky, Years
Normally my postman curses me because none of my parcels fit through the letterbox, those being well protected bottles of whisky to review. I doubt he was any less impressed when he attempted to deliver my latest acquisition but i’m sure he knew this time it wasn’t a bottle as the parcel contained a fabulous book from those lovely people at Cutty Sark. The title of the book was Travel Photographer of the Year and is a superb collection of images based around various categories of travel photography.
Cutty Sark are one of the main sponsors and in particular of the award for Spirit of Adventure photographer of the year which went to Franco Banfi. Franco is renowned for environmental, wildlife and most famously underwater photography the latter winning this this year’s award. UK photographer Martin Hartley took the runner up prize with his images shot during the Catlin Arctic Survey in Canada.
The book, which contains the best images from the 2010 and 2011 awards including the winners’, is a fascinating pictorial map capturing the everyday, the sublime, the familiar and the other worldly. Find out more about Travel Photography of the Year and purchase the book for yourself.
Of course, there was a bottle of whisky along with the book and it made a welcome companion whilst losing a few hours within the pages but it almost sent me on my own little adventure. I wanted to find a little more and the reason for the link to The Spirit of Adventure.
We take many of the whisky brands on the market for granted, forgetting the heritage and provenance behind them as new brands emerge with tentative links to the past to create an interesting back story. Cutty Sark is a little different. In 1923, the partners of Berry Bros. & Rudd in London were discussing, amongst many other things, the opportunity to create a new type of blended Scotch with a lighter style to appeal to their wine based clientele. At the time, most blended Scotch was of a rich and heavy style giving the new Berry Bros. & Rudd blend a unique selling point with its light, pale style. Of course, they needed to call this new whisky something and looked to current affairs for inspiration. The world’s fastest tea clipper, the Cutty Sark was very much in the news and following a suggestion from Scottish artist James McBey Berry Bros. decided this would be an appropriate symbol perhaps representing both the strength and ground breaking qualities of this fresh new blend. The whisky was launched to great applause and instantly became a success.
Cutty Sark is based around a core of grain from North British and select malts such as Glenrothes, Macallan, Highland Park, Bunnahabhain, Tamdhu and Glengoyne. Despite these weighty players, and many others which you wouldn’t instantly think of producing light spirit, Cutty remains light and filled with fruity character and was clearly a revelation and rather adventurous advance in the blended scotch market at the time of its launch.
I’m rather ashamed to say that It had been many years since I last held a bottle of Cutty in my hands. The first notable thing for me was the new slender, almost feminine pale green bottle and that unmissable yellow label which is rather smaller than previous but still stands out. I couldn’t wait to crack it open and get the review under way.
Appearance: Pale straw, with white gold
Nose: Immediately oily malt with citrus fruits and buttery macadamia nut. Hessian drizzled with pale honey and white grapefruit zest. A handful of green hay mixed with crisp autumnal leaf.
Palate: Orange barley sweets, light golden syrup and a bite of fruit and nut mixture. Lots of lovely citrus elements (Seville orange marmalade and roses lime marmalade ) mingle with the slightest hint of roasted chestnuts in the background.
Finish: A delightful finish of lingering citrus, toasted vanilla, delicate malt sweetness and a hint of drying nuttiness.
Summary: I am a big fan of both Highland Park and The Glenrothes so it will come as no surprise that I find this whisky rather delicious and if, like me, its been some time since you tried some Cutty Sark then I suggest you change that situation immediately and have a wee adventure of your own.
Tags: 2010, 2011, 2012, adventure, amazon, Arctic, award, awarded, Barfi, berry ros, blend, Blended, book, British, Bunnahabhain, camera, Canada, Cask, Catlin, Cutty, Edrington, environment, explorer, Franco, Glengoyne, Glenrothes, Hartley, Highland, image, james, Macallan, malt, Martin, maxxium, McBey, North, Park, photographer, photography, postman, Rudd, Sark, Scotch, single, spirit, Survey, Tamdhu, underwater, whiskey, whisky, world, year
Before I ever begin a tasting session, I can probably write down the five questions I will surely be asked. 1. What is your favourite whisky? 2. Do very expensive whiskies taste good? 3. Is it ok to add ice/water? 4. What is Bourbon and 5. How many whisky regions are there. It is this last question that normally launches me off into a ramble lasting longer than it probably should.
The thing is, you can approach whisky in a number of ways, from the very detailed study of the science involved- it’s germination, fermentation, methanols, ethanols, phenols, fatty acids, and esters bumping into copper, catalysing and oxidising, esterifying to create the flavours and aromas we expect, to the far simpler approach of knowing what style you like and just enjoying it with friends. Of course, there is a huge chasm of information between one approach and the other and I for one tend to choose a path somehwere between the two in order to understand the science without it distracting me from the joy on the whisky itself.
But what of those just starting out on the journey of whisky discovery? What should they look out for? Where should the journey begin? Well, understanding what you like yourself is a huge help. Like spicy food? Probably going to like a spicy whisky. Like salty food, then it might be a coastal distillery you aim for. So how about these whisky regions we hear of? Surely those make it simple I hear you say. Well no actually, they only confuse in my opinion.
There are six whisky “regions” in Scotland. Highland, Speyside, Lowland, Island, Campbelltown and Islay. Supposedly, these areas each have their own distinct style and therefore give an indication of the whisky inside the bottle when the region it hails from is printed on the label. That, quite frankly, is the type of out-dated approach to whisky that won’t do it any good as the world of whisky (non-scotch) builds in quality and confidence causing us to cling to our tartan hems as the waters of progress start lapping at them. To understand why regions play little or no part in modern whisky, we have to understand how they came about in the first place. In the early 16th century, the whisky produced would have been distilled from a variety of grains, including barley, and these grain recipes would no doubt have differed from farm to village as any surplus of harvested grain was set aside for distillation. Whisky was in a healthy, if somewhat unregulated, state of production all across Scotland, but it wasn’t until the union of the English and Scottish parliaments in 1707 that we start seeing a big shift in attitude and production. A malt tax was introduced (as had already been the case in England) which upset Scottish producers and consumers no end and it’s continued increase saw riots in the streets and general bloody unrest know as the Malt Tax Riots. As taxation increase once more illicit distilling was just around the corner, forced out of the farms and homes and starting to spread (home-made spirit was exempt from tax).
As Londoners lay drunk in the streets on gin, parliament drew up the Gin Act to try and stem the “flow” of gin consumption and limit production and sale by imposing costly licenses and high duty for producers and retailers. Scotland was exempt (for now) of this act and as such, production of mixed grain spirit increased which would eventually make its way across the border to be made into gin. Although, it was probably a ban on distilling in the mid and late 1700′s (crop failure) that helped drive the illegal sale of whisky in Scotland, as the home distiller, still under the radar of the excise man and exempt from the legislation imposed on its commercial neighbours, started to supply the ever increasing demand for whisky.
The Highland Line (the first of the regions) divided Scotland in two, for the purpose of differing duty and regulations about spirit production. The tax was lowered for those above the line, but they were banned from exporting the spirit out of the region (yup, not even within their own country) but this did see a certain amount of quality control as Highland distillers could use a smaller still than their Lowland counterparts and could take their time in the production of the spirit. Those below the line however, were forced to produce a harsher spirit from still which could be worked quickly in order to increase outrun. This of course all fell nicely into the hands of the smugglers and illegal distillers who cashed in on trade opportunities around the UK. It wasn’t until the early 1800′s and the introduction of the small stills act that the Highland Line was abolished, the duty was reduced and smaller stills were permitted. This saw a fast growth in legal distilleries and an equilibrium of quality between the two now defunct regions. So, a historic line drawn for tax purposes which THEN changed how those above and below distilled their spirits still demands we choose our whisky style based on location. Glengoyne distillery, which happens to straddle the imaginary line distills in the Highlands, yet its warehouse lies on the opposite side of the road effectively in the Lowlands…a case of split personality?
For the purpose of this blog, I have only just scratched the surface. For more in-depth information about the history of whisky and how many of the traditions evolved I suggest picking up a copy of Charlie Maclean’s book – Malt Whisky, The Complete Guide in which Charlie really gets to grips with the historical side of whisky.
Speyside has one of the highest concentration of distilleries now in operation in Scotland. The land surrounding the river Spey is fertile and produces excellent quality barley from its deep alluvial soil from the banks of the Moray firth, good peat moorland, plenty of springs from the snow capped Cairgorms which also provided great hiding places for the number of illegal distillers of the time. Speyside has a vast array of styles but due to the fame of The Glenlivet distillery, many tried to emulate its light fruity flavour and smooth finish. Yet, just in the next glen we can find heavy full on rich style (Aberlour) and even a smokey whisky (Ardmore). The diversity of these distilleries simple means you can’t guarantee the style of the whisky in the bottle if it says “Speyside” on the label.
Campbelltown, a town on the Kintyre peninsula which hangs down off the west of Scotland, did at one point have over 25 distilleries, with many more in the surrounding countryside- and like Speyside benefitted from good peat, barley, spring water and troublesome geographical location. By all acounts, there didnt seem to be a particular “style” produced here, something between the Islay distileries and Highland. Today only three distilleries making 5 different whiskies remain Springbank (Hazelburn, Longrow), Glen Scotia and Kilkerran. There is something you can guarantee from this droop of land as a friend of mine who worked for the BBC told me the angle the peninsula lies off the coast is the maximum angle the naked male appendage can be if ever viewed on the BBC with the island of Arran adding somewhat of an additional piece of imagery for this purpose.
So what are we left with? The “islands” and “Islay“. Well, considering the islands are lumped together as all islands of Scotland (with the exception of Islay) no matter if they are tucked up in sheltered firths such as Arran, Lewis in the outer Hebridean or Highland Park on Orkney- far too vast an area to have a singular “style”. There are heavily peated styles, light and floral, rich and fruity….good luck.
Isaly, I am almost tempted to say is actually they only one you can be sure of style. Typically peated, fresh and maritime notes with the distinct nose of iodine from the heavily peated barley. But would that put you off Bunnahabhain? Seeing the words Islay on its label, if you didnt like smokey whisky might just do that. But Bunnahabhain, on the north east of the island, does not peat its barley and therefore is not a smokey whisky (although they now have Toitech).
So, these regions we seem to so dearly to maintain are nothing more than marketing provenance to a by-gone era. They do little to help us understand what is in the bottle and can simply confuse a reader in most cases. Thankfully, brands are beginning to realise that it is better to put better tasting notes and a bit more info to help out, yet its normally on the back label with a region proudly displayed on the front. Further to this, distilleries like Balvenie are constantly pushing the development of their style- with the likes of Single Cask, Peated Cask and full sherry cask all joining the list from the distillery normal releases and none of that trio are anything like the expected taste and smell of Balvenie, a risk perhaps which could upset the regular Balvenie drinker- but distilleries like Bavenie realise that the whisky drinker is changing, becoming younger, coming from new countries and from very different backgrounds. These individuals are key to the future growth of whisky and are choosing their tipple on flavour, not historic political or geographical boundaries.
Tags: Aberlour, act, alcohol, ardmore, arran, Balvenie, barley, bourbon, Bunnahabhain, campbelltown, Cask, distill, distillation, england, esters, ethanol, fermentation, firth, flavour, Gin, Glen, Glen Scotia, Glengoyne, Glenlivet, Grain, Hebridean, Hebrides, Highland, historic, history, illicit, islands, islay, Kilkerran, kintyre, lane, Lewis, lowland, malt, mature, moray, Orkney, Park, Peated, regions, riots, science, Scotland, Scottish, Sherry, single, smokey, Speyside, spirit, Springbank, style, tax, toitech, type, union, well, whiskey, whisky
